Variable Speed Pool Pump Schedules
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This page is dedicated to variable speed pool pump schedules and scheduling for variable speed pumps for different pool sizes and configurations. There is a lot of of both pressure and incentive for pool owners to upgrade to a variable speed pool pump. There is also a great deal of misinformation about variable speed pumps still among pool owners who are skeptical of this "new" technology. Even if you turn off your pool pump most of the day you will still save money on operating costs versus a single speed pump. Here are examples of exactly this with a pool pump that runs 8 hours per day and another where a variable speed pump still saves more than a single speed pump that runs only 4 hours per day. With even a half hearted attempt to set up a variable speed pump you should be able to cut your operating costs in half.
What about pool owners who know the potential of a variable speed pump and want to maximize the savings? Is it possible to save more than 50% of the electricity cost you used to pay to run a single speed pump? Most definitely. This page will highlight much of the information that you need to know to accomplish this because it is, unfortunately, more complicated than just running your pump on the lowest speed setting 24/7. For the vast majority of pools that would be a very bad idea. Yes your operating costs for the pump are only a few dollars per week, but unfortunately the pool is green and also cold since there was not enough water filtration and the heater did not have the minimum flow rate to safely fire up and run. So you see dialing in the savings of a variable speed pump is really a balance equation between savings on electricity but also meeting the flow requirements of your pool. Let's look at how you can have both clean, filtered water as well as reduced electrical costs to run your pump.
Filtration goals - The amount of water that you need to filter every day will change depending on who you ask. Many pool owners filter their water one turnover per day. So a 20,000 gallon pool would have a total of 20,000 gallons pass through the filter every day. While the pool might (or might not) remain clear with this level of filtration, you can safely assume that you have not filtered all of the water in the pool. With the way clean water diffuses back into the (dirty) main pool you actually achieve about 63% of all of the water in your pool being filtered on the first turnover. You get about 86% by the second turnover and about 95% by the third turnover. A fourth turnover would increase the total to 98% of all the water in your pool being filtered at least one time. I like to promote that pool owners should attempt to filter all of the water in their pool. For me, 95% sounds a lot like "all" of the water, and so I consider three turnovers daily as being the ideal amount and balance between actually filtering all of your water, but also pursuing minimal electrical costs. So a 20,000 gallon pool should aim to filter 60,000 gallons of water each day.
Filtration speeds - Every pool is unique which the information on this page will talk about, but as a starting point for all pools you should aim to have a dynamic flow schedule. What this means is most pools would not be optimally programmed if they run all day at one speed. Ideally you want to have periods of time at high speeds as this will allow the pool skimmers to function well, and allow for maximum circulation of the pool body. You do not want to run on the pumps highest speed in most cases. Even a few hundred RPM lower than full speed can result in substantial electrical savings while hardly reducing the actual flow rate at all. Flow drops in a linear fashion along with RPM. Electrical consumption drops by 8x for every 1x drop in RPM. There is a huge mathematical multiplier for savings when you lower RPM which is the entire basis behind variable speed pump technology. So when you run at high speeds, you probably want to actually be a few hundred RPM under full speed. Next, the pool should have some time at medium speed, which is very relative to each pool. The medium speed programming is the one which will change the most depending on the options / peripheral devices that your pool has such as a salt chlorine generator or an electric heat pump. That being said, as a starting point, the hours a medium speed should be about double the amount of hours that you run at high(er) speed. So we have a few hours at high(er) speed and about double that many at medium speed. The remainder of the 24 hour day should be at low speed operation. Long hours of low speed operation are where you get your most efficient filtered water. Every hour that your pump is not running is another hour that could be running at miniscule electrical draw, but delivering substantial volumes of filtered water. The actual RPM values for low RPM operation are different on every pool. Some pools might move 15 GPM at 600 RPM while others might need 1200 RPM before they are actually pumping any water at all. The way you account for these differences is through the use of a flow meter.
Every pool with a variable speed pump should use a flow meter. Learn more about them in this article: pool flow meters
New to variable speed pumps?
Learn about the most popular models of variable speed pool pumps including information on motor sizing, pipe sizing and the most popular pump models from each major brand of equipment manufacturer. If you have not purchased a variable speed pump yet this is definitely required reading.
Variable speed pump schedules
This introductory article is a good place to start if you are new to variable speed pool pump programming. Learn about flow rates for different pool equipment, how often you should run your pump, and why every pool needs unique RPM values for their pump.
Hayward 1.5hp Super Pump Variable Speed Schedules
20x40' pool filtration (Hayward Super Pump & 1.5" pipes)
This variable speed pump schedule is for a 20x40' pool example that uses 1.5" plumbing along with a Hayward Super Pump VS (model # SP2603VSP). This is a large pool with small plumbing lines so the savings potential is less of a priority versus just being able to filter enough water.
20x40' pool filtration (Hayward Super Pump & 2" pipes)
A 20x40' pool filtration schedule using the Hayward Super Pump SP2603VSP along with a 2" plumbing system. The 2" plumbing system allows for more flow volume and more efficient flow versus the 1.5" configuration on this same pool. A pool this large could have even larger plumbing and operate even more efficiently.
16x32' pool filtration (Hayward Super Pump & 1.5" pipes)
In this filtration schedule example we are setting up a pump schedule for a pool between 15,000 to 20,000 gallons. Despite the smaller pipe size in use this schedule allows for over 50,000 gallons of filtered water per day for just over one dollar.
16x32' pool filtration (Hayward Super Pump & 2" pipes)
In this filtration schedule we achieve just over 60,000 gallons of filtered water for $1.05 per day. This is a good starting point for building a variable speed pump schedule for pools that are 15,000 to 20,000 gallons in volume and have 2" sized plumbing lines.
Black + Decker 1.5hp Variable Speed Pump Schedules
20x40' pool filtration (Black + Decker 1.5hp with 1.5" pipes)
This variable speed pump schedule looks at a pool with 30,000 to 35,000 gallons which is approximately a 20x40' pool with a deep end. The variable speed pump for this example is the Black + Decker 1.5hp model running on 1.5" plumbing lines. Despite the plumbing line limitations we achieve almost 100,000 gallons of filtered water for under $3.00 per day.
20x40' pool filtration (Black + Decker 1.5hp with 2" pipes)
In this example for a large swimming pool with a volume equivalent to a 20x40' pool we are able to achieve over 115,000 gallons of filtered water daily for the cost of about $2.93 using a Black + Decker 1.5hp variable speed pump.
16x32' pool filtration (Black + Decker 1.5hp with 1.5" pipes)
Using a pool that is 15,000 to 20,000 (16x32') gallons in volume as an example this filtration schedule for a 1.5hp Black + Decker pump uses 900 RPM, 1500 RPM and 3000 RPM periods of time daily to provide the pool with enough flow to keep it clean and skimmed of surface debris. Over 47,000 gallons of water filtered for only $0.81.
More pumps and pump filtration schedule examples to come...
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New Black + Decker variable speed pumps are available online from www.PoolPartsToGo.com and they are a drop in replacement for many popular pump models including Pentair Superflo and Hayward Super Pumps. With an adjustable platform base, union connections included and a very strong warranty these pumps offer an impressive value to pool owners.
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